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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23911342">What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Stronger?</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Loverboy_Lance/pseuds/Loverboy_Lance'>Loverboy_Lance</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Voltron: Legendary Defender</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Blood and Injury, Gay Keith (Voltron), Happy Ending, Hurt Lance (Voltron), Hurt/Comfort, I swear I can't leave my boys sad for more than a page, I'm Bad At Tagging, Insecure Lance (Voltron), Keith (Voltron) is a Mess, Lance (Voltron) Angst, Lance (Voltron)-centric, M/M, Mutual Pining, Non-Graphic Violence, POV First Person, POV Lance (Voltron), Pining Keith (Voltron), Pining Lance (Voltron), Sexual Tension, Space Dad Shiro (Voltron), and so does Lance, honestly I cried a little too, keith cries a little, that's a lot of tags wow</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 19:33:30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,833</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23911342</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Loverboy_Lance/pseuds/Loverboy_Lance</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Lance doesn't value his worth but Keith thinks he's worth the world. Lance doesn't know this, of course, and so he decides to sacrifice his life for the sake of Keith. Shiro obviously doesn't let this happen, but Lance insists. Shiro finds a way around this, much to Lance's dismay, but everything works out in the end.</p>
<p>Excerpt:</p>
<p>“I can’t leave you here!”<br/>“And you can’t get both of us,” I reasoned. “Get him first, come back for me.”<br/>“You won’t make it!”<br/>“And if I don’t?” I countered. Shiro’s frown deepened. “Just go find him, please. Make it my dying wish if that makes you feel better.”<br/>“Lance, please.”</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Keith &amp; Lance (Voltron), Keith/Lance (Voltron), Lance &amp; Shiro (Voltron)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>187</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Stronger?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raven_Muertos/gifts">Raven_Muertos</a>.</li>



    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>So I'm really just going through my secret Google Drive stash of fics an publishing them. Oops.<br/>I have so many more and I'm just going to go on a publishing spree today and fade in and out for the rest of time. Well, at least I'll have stuff published?<br/>Anyways, I hope you enjoy this Langst and maybe certain parts will make you cry as much as I did! &gt;:)</p>
<p>Also, I'm gifting this to my good friend Raven since he's part of the Voltron fandom and he's the one that inspired me to make this account. Thanks man!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>I hurt.</p>
<p>There was pain, it was everywhere. I opened my mouth to scream before thinking better of it and deciding to stay quiet. I wanted someone to find me, but that someone couldn’t be them.</p>
<p>The stench of blood filled the Galra cell like a rusted lock, one of the ones on the side of that one bridge all the couples knew about back near the Garrison. I went there a few times myself, but I was so far from there now…</p>
<p>Far enough that my family would never hear me scream.</p>
<p>Far enough that my mama would never know what killed her little baby boy.</p>
<p>Far enough that she might not even know I was dead at all.</p>
<p>I let out a little whimper at that thought, a pathetic little noise. Just because my mama might never get to see me again was no reason to let them find me. I clamped my mouth shut, stifling my breathing to the point where I was hardly breathing at all. That was better.</p>
<p>“Keith?” I heard Shiro’s voice before I saw the glow from his hand. “Keith, where are you?”</p>
<p>His voice was pained, which made sense. Keith was like his little baby brother; if he died Shiro would never forgive himself.</p>
<p>I didn’t dare call out, get Shiro’s hopes up only for him to find me. What was I good for, anyways? Nothing as far as I knew, and Keith was so much better at everything. It was better if Shiro ignored me to find Keith.</p>
<p>“Keith? Please, I can’t lose you!” I heard the vibration of Shiro swinging his hand around. “Oh, Keith, please-”</p>
<p>There was a pause, a gasp, and then a choked sob.</p>
<p>“Keith, please don’t let that be you…”</p>
<p>I heard footsteps coming closer and I sniffled. I didn’t want to be found yet, Keith was more important go find him, Shiro go find Keith I don’t matter go find Keith go find-</p>
<p>“Lance?” Shiro was holding up his glowing hand, looking me straight in the eyes. I nodded. “Oh God, Lance, you’re hurt!”</p>
<p>“I know,” I said, voice calm.</p>
<p>“Why didn’t you say anything?” Shiro looked like he was about to break down crying.</p>
<p>“Go find Keith,” was all the response I gave.</p>
<p>“What does he have to do-”</p>
<p>“Nothing,” I answered. “Go find Keith.”</p>
<p>“But Lance, you could die!” Shiro looked around quickly before leaning down, probably to pick me up. That wouldn’t do, I’d only slow him down.</p>
<p>I scooted backwards. “Go find Keith,” I insisted.</p>
<p>“Why, Lance? You’re literally bleeding out, I have to help you!”</p>
<p>“Keith could be bleeding out, too,” I whispered.</p>
<p>“But you’re here, not Keith,” Shiro pointed out.</p>
<p>“I know, but you need to find Keith. He’s useful.”</p>
<p>“So are you!”</p>
<p>“Nah, I’m really not.” I gave my best shrug for someone bleeding out in a Galra prison cell. “You’ve got the whole leader-gig, so we need you for obvious reasons. Pidge is a tech genius, genius in general really. Hunk is a sweetheart and good for negotiations and oh can he bake, and Keith. Where do I even start with Keith? He’s just too damn perfect. I can’t keep up, never have been able to. Me though? What do I do, what do I bring to the team?”</p>
<p>“Lance, you’re… you said it yourself,” Shiro sighed. “You’re our ninja sharpshooter, Lance.”</p>
<p>“And what good does an injured sharpshooter do?” I countered. “What good do I usually do in general? I call myself a sharpshooter but how often do I really make the shot?”</p>
<p>“Lance, you’re coming with me,” Shiro said, and it was an order. I wasn’t supposed to say no.</p>
<p>“No, go find Keith. Find him, then you can come back. Find Keith,” I insisted.</p>
<p>“Look, Lance, I know he’s my brother and all but I’d never forgive myself if I left you here. Honestly, he’d probably never forgive me either.”</p>
<p>“What, he likes beating me into the dust, leaving me behind, being better, all that much?” I laughed. “No thanks, Shiro, I don’t really want to go back to that.”</p>
<p>“Lance-”</p>
<p>“Nah, I’m good. Tell him it was my decision. He’s worth it.”</p>
<p>“You’re worth it, too.” Shiro frowned. “When did we say you weren’t?”</p>
<p>“Not important,” I said, shutting that conversation down. “Just go find our samurai for me, please.”</p>
<p>“I can’t leave you here!”</p>
<p>“And you can’t get both of us,” I reasoned. “Get him first, come back for me.”</p>
<p>“You won’t make it!”</p>
<p>“And if I don’t?” I countered. Shiro’s frown deepened. “Just go find him, please. Make it my dying wish if that makes you feel better.”</p>
<p>“Lance, please.”</p>
<p>“If I don’t make it tell Keith I love him,” I said, using the last of my strength to push Shiro off of me.</p>
<p>“Lance, please,” Shiro begged. “I want you to say it to him yourself, okay? I’m getting you out of here.”</p>
<p>“Go. Find. Keith,” I snarled.</p>
<p>Shiro sighed. “I didn’t want to have to do this to any of you…”</p>
<p>I saw him pick up a rod from the floor, and before I could protest my world was black.</p>
<p>-----</p>
<p>“Lance? Lance, please, Lance!” I heard shouting as I was in… something.</p>
<p>I prayed to every god I could think of, not just the one I knew and trusted, that everything would be okay and I wasn’t in another prison cell. I also prayed that Keith was okay, but if Shiro had saved me he might not be, and I was more than okay with being in a prison cell or even dead if Keith was okay. He was what mattered, at least to me.</p>
<p>“Lance!”</p>
<p>There was a sob on the other side of wherever I was and a clanging sound like something had hit something else. I didn’t want to open my eyes, didn’t want to be back in a Galra prison, but… well, I’d have to know eventually. So I looked, and I was shocked.</p>
<p>“Lance, oh my God, Lance, Lance, please,” Keith was crying on the other side of some sort of glass, sobs choking his voice and making his words stutter.</p>
<p>“Keith?” I croaked, and the glass vanished.</p>
<p>I was falling, falling, falling, falling-</p>
<p>Caught.</p>
<p>Keith caught me in his arms, smile brighter than any star we’d seen and tears still flowing.</p>
<p>“Lance, I thought-” Keith hiccupped before continuing,” I thought you were dead, Lance! Lance, Lance, you have to promise me-” he hiccupped again, “you have to promise me not to die, okay? Promise me, please, Lance, please.”</p>
<p>“But-” I tried to talk, but my voice seemed shattered and breathing was hard. I shrugged it off; I had to power through, if not for myself then for Keith. “But I thought you hate me?”</p>
<p>“Lance, no, never,” Keith said, pulling me closer and resting his chin on my head. It still felt weird for him to be taller than me but I found I didn’t really mind now.</p>
<p>“Then what-”</p>
<p>“I thought you hated me, I thought you hated me so much,” Keith whispered, and he hiccupped with tears again before continuing. “Lance, I never hated you. Never, understand? You started that dumb rivalry and I didn’t know-” he hiccupped again, “I didn’t know how else to get closer to you. It was my only shot. Shiro said it was dumb but I thought you hated me so I had no choice and I’m sorry for ever making you think that I hated you because of all of that.”</p>
<p>I froze, stunned into silence. Keith didn’t hate me? Okay, I was definitely dead. There was no way this was real, it couldn’t be.</p>
<p>When I finally unfroze it had only been a few seconds but it felt like a few eternities.</p>
<p>“Keith, I’m sorry, but this can’t be real. You can’t trick me, the only way this is real is if I’m dead or dreaming and I know which one is far more likely.”</p>
<p>“What?” Keith pulled off of me enough that I could look him in the eye, see the emotions there that I’d never seen on Keith before. I had no clue what that meant, but with the way tears were still going and I had never even seen Keith cry before it wasn’t good.</p>
<p>“Is it so hard to imagine me not hating you that you have to be dead for it to be happening?” Keith asked, voice a whisper and hiccupping from tears finally under control.</p>
<p>“Yeah,” I whispered, voice still raw for whatever reason. “You never paid much attention to me until Blue, but then it was all… mean. You can’t like me in real life, this only happens in my dreams and then-”</p>
<p>I cut myself off. On the off-chance that this was real Keith didn’t need me to finish that sentence.</p>
<p>“Then what?” Keith whispered, still holding my gaze.</p>
<p>“I’d rather not say,” I admitted. “Another time, maybe, when I’m sure about what is and isn’t reality. Can I… where are the others?”</p>
<p>Keith finally looked away, frowning in a way that told me he felt guilty about something. It didn’t happen often, but whenever it did he wasn’t very subtle about it.</p>
<p>“Keith? Where are they?”</p>
<p>“We managed to save you,” Keith started, still not looking at me. “We also managed to save me. I wasn’t very injured, you were much more so. I thought you were going to die, Lance, I really did. Shiro said you didn’t want him to take you, wanted him to find me first. I called BS, Shiro said to ask you myself once you woke up. That was that.”</p>
<p>“Then where are they?” I asked.</p>
<p>“The Galra followed us,” Keith admitted. “I’m not in bad shape, I just didn’t want to leave you here alone. They’re obviously after you, wouldn’t have been dumb enough to persue if they weren’t. I don’t want to lose you again, so the others are out fighting and I’m here. Allura took Blue and Coran took Red, the castleship is on autopilot.”</p>
<p>The room felt like it was spinning, everything felt hazy. Keith cared enough to stay behind with me instead of fighting with the others? Instead of being in Voltron, the thing he’d fought so hard to get back to? He chose me instead? What kind of dream was this?</p>
<p>“That isn’t true,” I insisted. “I’m obviously dreaming, I know it now. You’d never do that, that’s just so… not Keith. There’s no way you were here the whole time, just watching me. You’re not like that.”</p>
<p>Keith sighed. “Can we go back to one of our rooms for now? The Galra will never expect us to be there if they do board.”</p>
<p>“Fine, whatever, but I don’t think I can walk.”</p>
<p>“I’ll carry you.”</p>
<p>Sure enough, Keith picked me up bridal-style and I nearly died right then and there. He was strong, and if I was still standing I’d surely be swooning. It did strike me as a strange fantasy, though, because usually I was being taken to bed under much different circumstances and it didn’t hurt half as much as it did now.</p>
<p>I just mentally shrugged it off. My dreams were weird, this was obviously no exception. I was simply glad to have Keith, that was always my favourite thing about dreams.</p>
<p>-----</p>
<p>“So, how can I prove to you that you’re not dreaming?” Keith asked me once he had gently set me down on the bed.</p>
<p>“Well, there’s a few things you’d never do in a dream but like I can’t tell you them because then you’d do them because my brain wants this to feel more real,” I rambled.</p>
<p>“You dream about me?” Keith asked, one eyebrow quirking upwards with a smirk.</p>
<p>“Okay, you’re really not helping your case that this isn’t a dream,” I complained.</p>
<p>“Oh?” Keith asked. “Well, if I can’t convince you it’s not a dream, what do I usually do in your dreams?”</p>
<p>Well, that was also out of character for the Keith that usually appeared in my dreams. Now I was really confused.</p>
<p>“I uh,” I stammered. “I can’t tell you. You always know.”</p>
<p>“Then maybe you should tell me what you want for once, hm?”</p>
<p>And there it was, dreamland sexy Keith was turned on and my stomach was doing flips.</p>
<p>“Yeah, this is a dream. That’s dream Keith right there.”</p>
<p>“It is, is it?” Keith whispered, voice close to a growl and I burst into a huge smile.</p>
<p>“I told you that you always knew what to do,” I said with a sigh. “That’s why dreams are the best.”</p>
<p>“What if I were to tell you you’re not dreaming?” Keith asked, voice low and oh so gorgeous.</p>
<p>“I wouldn’t believe you, especially at this point,” I admitted.</p>
<p>“So I feature in these kinds of dreams?” Keith threaded his fingers with mine.</p>
<p>“More often than you could imagine,” I said with a sigh. “You’re just beautiful, I love you so much.”</p>
<p>Keith spluttered at that and I did a double-take. Wait. Oh shit.</p>
<p>I wasn’t dreaming.</p>
<p>I had just confessed to Keith.</p>
<p>I wasn’t dreaming.</p>
<p>“Shit,” I whispered. “Shit, oh my God, shit.”</p>
<p>I paused, frowning at Keith. Swave dream Keith was gone, all that was left was this mess of a real Keith that I had just confessed to.</p>
<p>“I didn’t really say that, did I?” I asked. “Shit, I thought I was dreaming. I’m really sorry, I guess I wasn’t dreaming after all, shit.”</p>
<p>Keith was still just sitting there, shocked and wide-eyed and even looking a bit confused. I mean I would be too, especially with the circumstances. He had to go from thinking I hated him to realizing I was in love with him in the span of less than half an hour, that can’t be easy.</p>
<p>“Keith?” I swore. “I’m really sorry, I really am, I take it back, if you don’t want to even talk to me anymore I understand, I’ll get over it I swear just don’t hate me please.”</p>
<p>My voice broke on the last word, which caught Keith’s attention. His eyes were still wide and he still looked shocked but he seemed to have gotten his voice back.</p>
<p>“Lance, I don’t hate you, never did and I never will.” He sighed. “I also don’t want to never talk to you, that would be horrible.”</p>
<p>“Then what do you want?” I muttered, expecting something horrible in retaliation to my confession. I only ever got turned down; I acted like a lover but really I had never gotten the chance except with my family.</p>
<p>“I want to love you back, like I always have,” Keith said, and it was my turn to freeze. “If you’ll let me of course,” he quickly added.</p>
<p>“Of course I’ll let you. You’re the world to me, you know that?”</p>
<p>“Really?” Keith asked, seemingly astonished.</p>
<p>“I wouldn’t ask Shiro to leave me bleeding out in order for him to find just anyone,” I joked.</p>
<p>“Wait, what?” Keith screeched. “You did what?”</p>
<p>“Well yeah, you’re more important to the team,” I explained. “Shiro actually knocked me out to bring me back I think, I wouldn’t have let him otherwise.”</p>
<p>“Lance, look at me,” Keith said. When I did he put both of his hands on both of mine, the weight reassuring. “You mean the world to me, too, okay? I don’t want you to die, you saw what just the thought of it did to me. I put up a front around people but I really don’t want you to get hurt, ever.”</p>
<p>“That’s not really something in either of our control,” I pointed out.</p>
<p>“That’s true, but I’d give my life a thousand times to save you once,” Keith vowed. “You mean more to me than I do to myself, have for a long time. It’s bullshit that I didn’t notice you back at the Garrison, I was just new to liking people and didn’t know what to do so I ignored you. If I had just sucked it up and talked to you sooner things might be different, and maybe it wouldn’t have taken you nearly dying to confess that you like me too.”</p>
<p>“You’ve liked me since the Garrison?” I whispered. “That’s a joke, has to be.”</p>
<p>“Well, for a very flirty boy you managed to avoid one person in particular,” Keith explained. “That kinda drew my interest, led me to want to see what all the hype was about, and then I found myself being the only person who wanted in.”</p>
<p>I laughed. “So you were the only one who wanted me but you’re the only person I never thought to ask.”</p>
<p>“We’re fools,” Keith said.</p>
<p>“Fools, yes, but we’ll be fools together,” I replied.</p>
<p>With that Keith tackled me with a hug, and I hugged him back. It was more comfort than I’d had in a long time, too long. It felt exactly like home, sitting there in Keith’s arms.</p>
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